To have run the petrol down to 40 miles left

[Baby3or]

I recently drove 115 miles on a motorway back to London suburbs. I was watching the petrol number the whole way (it gives it in miles left to go before it’s empty) and at 70 I was considering stopping for petrol (lots of places on the motorway and then lots of places in city suburbs on the way to our house). I decided not to stop as baby was asleep and also our older child was keen to get home after a long journey.

we live less than a mile from a big supermarket with a petrol station and also plenty of other places to fill up.

husband had a go at me saying ‘what would I have done if we had run out of petrol / how had I let myself get in that situation’ I said I was fully aware how much was left and I made a decision not to refuel as on balance it was low but not empty.

AIBU??

Yeah I was advised that too so I also do it! 😳

Most trip computers show the range based on the current driving manner, so if you have been driving on a motorway doing 56mph it will show the range based on the MPG it thinks your doing, however, I have noted that my 40 miles left on the motorway quickly drops down to 20-25 once I enter a busy urban area, also, I have had cars that have gone dry with the range showing 15 miles left.

If your on the motorway, on a modern car, you could be getting 50-60 miles to the gallon, that is what I get in a BMW 520D, so in my car assuming say 55MPG which is normal for me on a motorway, 40 miles is 72% of what a gallon gives , worth about £4.24 worth of fuel in my tank.

Bearing in mind your MPG would drop down to quite drastically once your off the motorway, that is not an amount I would be comfortable with. I am not saying I have never done it, and I am not saying I would not argue back to anyone that called me on it, but the reality of the matter is that its not a huge amount of fuel, and it will be full of sediment and particles.

Gosh he’d have hatted to be with me that time I was on holiday in rural Mexico and the warning light came on and stations weren’t just around the corner. And the nearest station was out of petrol. On the way to catch flight home when the time was tight 😬. Admittedly this was irresponsible on my part. Allowing it to get to earning light in suburban UK is no risk at all.

I did exactly the same thing...
For years.
And like you, I had ferocious LTBs and you know what? AIBU slowly walked me to the realisation that no one would do the things he was doing if he loved me, and no sane woman would love a man who was like who I was married to.

It took years, numerous other abuses, but eventually I did leave.

I think you keep posting because the reminders that it is him that's the problem, not you is giving you strength in a way, and you can continue on knowing that this is the usual thing of him being him.

Please know that there will be a time that's best to leave, it doesn't need to be now just get your ducks in a row for when that time comes.

YAbothBU - it doesn't get low til it's under 14.

Oh I just read the rest of the thread and it's not at all lighthearted. Sorry OP. Yanbu.

Your husband would be horrified that I’m regularly driving round on empty with the warning light flashing and beeping.

(I drive a 17 year old car though. Might be different if I actually had a nice car🤣)

Reading these has made me realise a lot about myself. I have a work van and just under half full is where I feel the need to fill it. Helps I don't pay for fuel but the fuel light has been on probably twice in 3 years. Once on the motorway in traffic and that was almost too much for me 😂

Definitely why I couldn't have an electric car, too much stress!

40 Def isn't low and sorry about the sniping. Is it always little things? It gets so tiring when it's constant picking.

My dh has low fuel anxiety too. I find it weird. I fill up at about 10 because I live 4 miles from the nearest petrol station. I feel that’s cautious! He freaks out at less than 100.

He’s not a dick about it though.

You lot are giving me palpitations. I never go below a quarter tank of petrol; I have 165 miles left at the moment and the first thing I’ll be doing on Friday (pay day) is filling up!

(I’m sorry your husband is such a shit, OP ❤️)

I'm sure mine runs on fumes half the time

I ran out of petrol at the petrol pump once. Car literally stopped dead. Very lucky! Never did that again. I usually fill up when I get to 19 miles (for some reason it always goes straight to 0 after that!).

Sorry but how is he managing life on a daily basis if he is concerned about only 40 miles left in the car….

You're joking, right? It's really not good for it.

I used to share a car with my brother as a teen - we’d play chicken to avoid putting fuel in. I once ran out of petrol a short distance from the pump and had to get a wee push towards it.

DH cannot stand being low on petrol, but he doesn’t make this my problem. He just takes it and fills it up if it’s too low for him. I’ve only been for petrol a handful of times in the last decade as he can hardly bear it going below a half tank.

For all those previous posters who run their cars down to zero - what happens if you need to get somewhere urgently at short notice, or there’s an emergency?
I try not to let my car get down to less than 130km (eu based) or I feel very on edge.
Best to have enough in the tank to get you somewhere quickly if necessary!

I can go over 40 miles past zero. Once mine is below the empty line I'm in trouble. I know my car after ten years with it

I once ran out of fuel at night on a busy road - had known petrol was low but not had the chance to get more. After that I decided to refuel whenever I got below 100 miles - has worked well for me.
Sorry about the unsympathetic husband.

I try not too but it happens. We are rural so I know dhs car has fuel if needs be

I'm generally looking for fuel at that point. Stupid thing is I put it off, then do a journey and generally I'm worrying about time keeping or the kids acting as a screaming choir, then I get in, realise I've got a few miles and I'm on edge trying to find fuel.

The really silly thing? Whenever there's an issue, it seems fuel is hard to come by. Recent flooding made it hard to get fuel, or anywhere in a timely manner. I told everyone I know, you know with the flooding how it was, it was hard to get to a petrol station, and a 30 minute journey took me 85 minutes. I don't think it would be wise to have less than half a tank of fuel in the car at any point...and I've left my car to get to less than 20 miles about 4 times since.

I only ever filled it when the amber light came on. DH used to tell me I was over reacting. Apparently you can push it till a flashing red light comes on.

If you're driving 130km to an emergency, 5 mins to get fuel isn't going to make much of a difference.

😂 literally put fuel in today when it said 2 miles left...!

My mum will drive around for ages with the fuel light on. Her car literally running on fumes. I don't what it is that is a pain about getting fuel, but it just seems like an inconvenience.
Before my ex and I lived together, he would travel the 100 mile round trip and pick me up to spend Christmas with him. One christmas eve, he picked me up but took a gamble on the fuel level in his car. We pulled into a petrol station as the car ran out of petrol... the last few feet was it just rolling with the engine off... and the staff were 30 secs from turning the pumps off. We could have kissed them when they said we still had time to get petrol. 10pm on christmas eve.

DH and I try to never get below a half tank. For our Prius that's about 250 miles. We figure that's enough to get us wherever we need to go in case of an emergency without having to gas up. We hate the idea of getting 'that call' and having to waste time getting gas before we hit the road.

My DS1 was in a terrible accident and I was about 400 miles away. I'd just fueled up the day before and was able to jump in the car and get to him without stopping to refuel (Prius gets about 560 mi/tank).

So for 'safety sake' I sort of agree with your DH, in theory. In 'practice' however, since he's just doing it to give you a ration of shit, he's an asshole and you need to get your duckies in a row.